Scott Stallings beats PGA Tour field then flu bug

Scott Stallings with the championship trophy after winning the Farmers Insurance Open last Sunday. He will try to go back-to-back when he plays in the Waste Management Phoenix Open starting Thursday.(Photo: Christopher Hanewinckel USA TODAY Sports)

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Scott Stallings celebrated his win in last week's Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines – with an IV.

Stallings, who made a 72nd-hole birdie to win a shootout by one shot at Torrey Pines, fell victim Monday night to a nasty bug that took hold of his 11-month-old son, Finn, and wife, Jennifer, during the six-hour ride Sunday night from San Diego to his rented home in Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the worst, Stallings said his illness was "about a 30."

"If I could endorse the Mayo Clinic for any possible reason, I would endorse them. They were a life saver because my wife and I were in really rough shape," said Stallings, now a three-time PGA Tour winner. "If you asked me (Tuesday), I'd say there is no way I'm playing in the tournament. But the Mayo Clinic got me hooked up with some good doctors and nurses, all kind of IVs and fluid and stuff like that. I'm a completely different person."

His wife and son are fully mended as well – "Finn's happy and he's running around and he's full of speed so my wife and I have to be ready to go," he said – so Stallings can concentrate on winning his fourth Tour event when he plays in the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

His confidence is overflowing. Stallings moved to Scottsdale last year so he could focus on taking his game to the next level. He made equipment changes, hired a trainer and swing coach, and practiced and played golf nearly every day this winter. His win Sunday solidified the process, he said.

"I had really never taken that step and it was a little bit nerve-wracking to do it. To see it all come together was awesome," Stallings said. " … We made some pretty dramatic changes in a short amount of time. We went from a golf swing that involved hanging back and flipping and a matter of a lot of timing, and when it was good it was awesome, but when it was bad it was awful. Especially under the gun. It was just kind of hard to predict what was going to happen. I was kind of sick of it and I said I will do whatever it takes not to play like this anymore. … I'm not saying we have everything figured out, but I will say this – we're moving in the right direction."